Gencon – A Wrap Up

I love to play games.  (But you knew that, didn’t you.)  And Gencon is like Mecca for gamers.  So rather than rub your noses in the fact that you may not have gone to Gencon, I will just tell you what I got to play.  React in the way you see fit.

Call of Cthulhu – first time I’ve ever played this RPG.  I loved it.  My two GMs were both fantastic, and the system was relatively easy to learn (it’s percentage/d100 based).  The session had a great story.  There were four players, and we split into two groups of two.  We were playing the same characters in alternate timelines.  Very story based, and no combat to speak of in my group.  I loved it.

True Dungeon – This is a must see for anyone at Gencon, at least once.  It’s a very imaginative walk through dungeon, and it’s best enjoyed with friends.  I have tried it twice by myself, and it’s just not as fun.  Pick your role (“class”) based on if you are good at memorizing stuff or if you’d rather do combat via shuffleboard.  I’m a memorizer personally.  Always worth the trouble to coordinate and the money – it’s the most expensive thing I’ve done at Gencon.

The d20radio “How to Create a Successful Gaming Podcast” seminar/panel.  I went more because it was sort of a network meet-and-greet.  I had more fun watching my friend KW’s toddler try to escape than paying attention to the panel.  (Oh, yeah, I said it.)  But I wanted to meet people, and there just wasn’t time.  We all sort of huddled in the hall afterward.

Eclipse Phase – I.  Love.  This.  System.  I’d bought the core rule book for a friend for his birthday.  At Gencon, after playing, I bought myself a copy.  This GM was the best one I had during the whole convention – and I had some darn good GMs!  More role-playing heavy with a bit of combat.  I can’t wait to play this again.

CHAOS – This was set up by some role players from Kansas City, including Sterling Hershey who is one of the devs of Star Wars Saga Edition.  The premise was 6 systems in five hours.  It didn’t quite work out that way – we missed the last system.  But I was thrilled to get an introduction to so many new systems, and I am actually inspired by this.  I want to try to create something similar, and two of my friends are interested in helping out.

Cthulhutech – I’d been trying to get this on the table for over two years!  I own the core rule book, and I bought another book at GenCon.  The system has many factions, and we were playing in a 1984-type government vs the outside vs cultists game.  I require more!

Artemis – aka the Star Trek bridge simulator.  We had a group of 6 people play together, and it was fun.  You can apparently buy the game and play online.  The graphics weren’t anything to write home about, but playing for an hour with a group of friends was pretty fun.  I’d definitely do this again.

I missed two of my games.  The Lord of the Rings board game – which I tried to find in the massive Fantasy Flight Games area, even asking for help, but couldn’t and then gave up and went back to my hotel room because I was tired.  And a Reaper game which I really wanted to play in, but basically was too tired to enjoy so I skipped it.  (Anytime I can avoid getting cranky, I do – it was a good call.)

I also had some fun in the Dealer Hall, but honestly I didn’t spend that much time there.  My schedule was too crazy on Thursday and Friday to spend more than an hour there, and it was so crowded on Saturday and Sunday that I didn’t feel like I could just stroll through and enjoy it.  Next year I’ll have to remember that.